AUSTIN (KXAN) — In the thick of respiratory season and cedar fever, Austin Public Health officials are reporting upticks in local COVID-19 cases.
Janet Pichette, APH’s chief epidemiologist, told KXAN the agency saw COVID case counts increase by 600 new cases last week. It comes as data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is reporting similar trends in case counts and hospitalizations nationwide, with Texas one of 39 jurisdictions in the country experiencing high or very high respiratory illness levels.
Those cases include the new JN.1 variant, the now-dominant strain in the U.S. Despite its fast-acting spread, Pichette said new vaccines developed at minimizing COVID-19 case risks have been effective working against newer strains.
But with so much circulating right now, how do you tell what exactly is responsible for a runny nose or a tickle in your throat? Pichette said it all comes down to dissecting symptoms.
“For those of us who are suffering as myself from cedar fever right now or allergens: the itchy eyes, itchy nose, sneezing, even the inside of your ears starting to itch, those tend to be telltale signs of allergy symptoms,” she said.
The Mayo Clinic spelled out some of the most common symptoms of both allergies and COVID-19 and where the two conditions overlap.
For COVID-19, symptoms often include:
- Headache
- Dry cough
- Fever
- Muscle aches
- Tiredness
- Sore throat
- Runny or stuffy nose
- New loss of taste or smell
Occasional COVID-19 symptoms can include pink eye or conjunctivitis, nausea or vomiting and diarrhea, while itchiness in the nose, eyes, mouth or inner ears are typically never linked with COVID.
As for allergies, those cases usually feature:
- Itchy nose, eyes, mouth and inner ears
- Sneezing
- Runny or stuffy nose
Allergies can sometimes cause tiredness, a cough, pink eye or new loss of taste or smell. In rare cases, it can lead to headaches, and typically never cause fevers, muscle aches, diarrhea or nausea and vomiting, per the Mayo Clinic.
Despite that cheat sheet, Pichette said testing is always the best confirmation or way to rule out various respiratory issues.
“When in doubt, test yourself or get tested by a provider,” she said. “If it is something that is like the flu or COVID-19, you can get the necessary treatment or antiviral therapy to help lessen the severity of that illness.”